US Congressional Panel Subpoenas Attorney General Pam Bondi in Jeffrey Epstein Files Investigation

A US congressional committee said that it has issued a subpoena to Attorney General Pam Bondi to testify behind closed doors as part of its investigation into the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Bondi faces accusations that the Justice Department has concealed the names of influential associates of Epstein in its release of millions of documents related to the late financier.

Under the subpoena, Bondi is required to give a sworn deposition to the United States House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on April 14.

A Justice Department spokesperson said the subpoena was “completely unnecessary”, stating that lawmakers have already been able to privately review unredacted versions of the Epstein files at a Justice Department facility. Bondi and her deputy, Todd Blanche, are also due to give the committee a separate private briefing on Wednesday.

“She continues to have calls and meetings with members of Congress on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which is why the department offered to brief the committee tomorrow,” the spokesperson said, referring to legislation passed by Congress almost unanimously in November. “As always, we look forward to continuing to provide policymakers with the facts.”

Representative James Comer of Kentucky, the Republican chair of the House Oversight Committee, said in a letter to Bondi on Tuesday that the panel is seeking information about the Justice Department’s collection, review and release of files connected to Epstein.

Epstein cultivated close ties with powerful political and business leaders before and after he was convicted in 2008 of soliciting prostitution from a minor. He was arrested again in 2019 and later died in jail while facing federal sex-trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide.

Lawmakers have complained that redactions in the Justice Department’s files appear to go beyond the limited exemptions permitted under the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The department has also declined to publish a large volume of material, citing legal privileges.

Bondi said that more than 500 Justice Department lawyers worked under a compressed timeline to review large volumes of material. Officials have acknowledged errors in the rollout of the files but denied claims that any powerful individuals were protected.

The Epstein files have continued to shadow Bondi throughout her tenure as attorney general under President Donald Trump. Some of Trump’s supporters accused her of a cover-up last July after the Justice Department said it would not release additional material related to its investigations of Epstein, despite earlier expectations of further disclosures. The decision also revived scrutiny over Trump’s past friendship with Epstein.

Trump has said he broke off ties with Epstein years before the financier’s 2008 conviction and has repeatedly stated that he saw no evidence of sex trafficking. He has not been accused by law enforcement authorities of any criminal activity related to Epstein.

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